Chapter 2 — The Boy at the Park
424 Words
Chapter 2 — The Boy at the Park
A week after that rainy night, Jerinah Lopez started going to the park almost every afternoon.
It was not because she suddenly loved nature or wanted fresh air. Honestly, she just hated staying inside her room for too long. The silence there felt dangerous sometimes. At least in the park, there were noises — children laughing, dogs barking, leaves moving with the wind, random conversations from strangers passing by.
Those sounds reminded her that life kept moving even if hers felt stuck.
She usually sat on the same bench near the old fountain while wearing earphones with no music playing. It helped people avoid talking to her.
Most days, nobody bothered her.
Until him.
“Do you actually listen to music,” a voice suddenly asked, “or are those earphones just emotional support?”
Jerinah slowly looked up.
A boy around her age stood beside the bench holding a bottled drink. Black hoodie. Messy hair. Calm eyes.
He looked annoyingly relaxed.
“What?” she asked flatly.
“The earphones,” he repeated while pointing lightly. “There’s no sound coming from them.”
Jerinah immediately removed one side. “You can hear that?”
“You’re sitting very close.”
“That sounds like a you problem.”
The boy laughed quietly before sitting on the opposite side of the bench without asking permission.
Normally, Jerinah would have left already.
But for some reason, she stayed.
“I’m Drecel Suarez,” he said casually.
“I didn’t ask.”
“Still answered.”
She rolled her eyes.
The silence between them lasted a few seconds before Drecel spoke again.
“You come here every day.”
“You observe strangers often?”
“Only the interesting ones.”
“That sounds creepy.”
“That sounds defensive.”
Jerinah clicked her tongue and looked away.
For some reason, talking to him felt strange. Not uncomfortable exactly. Just unfamiliar. Most people either pitied her too much or ignored her completely. Drecel did neither.
He simply talked to her normally.
“You always look sad,” he suddenly said.
The words caught her off guard.
People usually avoided saying things like that directly.
Jerinah forced a small laugh. “Wow. Straight to the point.”
“Sorry. I just notice things.”
“And you think you already figured me out?”
“No,” Drecel answered calmly. “I think you’re trying hard not to let people figure you out.”
That made her quiet.
- Writer
